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Multiple-Meaning Words

A multiple-meaning word is spelled and said the same way but means different things: a bat flies at night, and you hit a ball with a bat. Context is the only clue, which is why these words are such good reading practice.

Here are 120 multiple-meaning words from past ClueBy puzzles, each with a real example sentence for every meaning. Use them as a reference, or make a printable worksheet below.

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Students read each sentence and write the missing word. Every word appears in several sentences, each time with a different meaning.

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Multiple-Meaning Words

Name: ____________________Date: __________

Write the missing word in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

  1. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  2. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  3. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  4. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  5. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  6. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  7. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  8. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  9. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  10. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  11. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  12. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  13. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  14. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  15. The ________________ market has crashed.
  16. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  17. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  18. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  19. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  20. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  21. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  22. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  23. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  24. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.

Sentences from ClueBy, Tatoeba (CC BY 2.0 FR) and Common Voice (CC0). clueby.com

Answer key

  1. board — a flat piece
  2. bat — for baseball
  3. leaves — to go away
  4. wind — to turn a key
  5. bat — in an idiom
  6. march — music
  7. leaves — of a tree
  8. march — the month
  9. board — a committee
  10. lean — to bend
  11. lean — to rest against
  12. leaves — lets stay
  13. board — to get on
  14. perch — for a bird
  15. stock — shares
  16. wind — moving air
  17. perch — for a bird
  18. bat — the animal
  19. lean — thin
  20. wind — moving air
  21. stock — a soup base
  22. march — the month
  23. perch — the fish
  24. stock — goods

Multiple-meaning words list

Tick up to 10 words to build a worksheet with just those words.

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Frequently asked questions

What are multiple-meaning words?

Words with the same spelling and pronunciation but more than one meaning, like bark (of a dog or of a tree) or bank (for money or of a river). You can only tell which meaning is meant from the rest of the sentence.

Are multiple-meaning words the same as homonyms?

Mostly, yes. Teachers often use "multiple-meaning words" and "homonyms" for the same idea. Homophones are different: they sound alike but are spelled differently, like flour and flower.

Are the worksheets free?

Yes. Make and print as many as you like for home or classroom use. Each sheet has its own link, so you can print the same one again.

Where do the words come from?

From past ClueBy puzzles, a daily game where you sort twelve sentences by their missing word. A new puzzle every day adds four more words to this list.

Sentences from ClueBy, Tatoeba (CC BY 2.0 FR) and Common Voice (CC0). clueby.com